sending Andrew Craigie to Fort George to "act as an 

 Apothecary." Morgan also asked for an inventory 

 of drugs on hand in the Northern Department. "* 



Stringer spent only a day or two in New York with 

 Morgan — just long enough to intensify their personal 

 feud over responsibilities and authority. Stringer 

 determined that the "twenty half-chests" apparently 

 were a figment of someone's imagination, because 

 supplies in New York were almost as bad as they were 

 in the north. Also, he learned that Morgan was 

 sending a box of medicine northward "under the 

 care of the Surgeon of Col. Wayne Regt." '^ that 

 was undouljtedly intended to serve only as a regi- 

 mental chest. Stringer then hurried on to Phila- 

 delphia just in time to intercept McHenry, who had 

 obtained "an order from the Committee of Congress 

 for 40 lb. Bark, 10 [lb.] Camphire and some other 

 articles." *" 



Stringer wrote Potts on August 17 that at last he had 

 obtained an order for medicines that would be packed 

 in two days, Ijut added "when you'll receive them 

 God knows." He also reported that "there will also 

 arrive another Box under the care of Doct. McHenry 

 containing only 5 articles of which there is but 30 lbs. 

 Bark and I think not a purgative except some few 

 pounds of Rhubarb and a little Fol. Senae.'' *" 

 McHenry, however, only got as far as New York 

 with his meager supplies, because Stringer discharged 

 him from the ser\-ice in an attempt to show both 

 Morgan and Potts who had the most authority. '- 



Stringer's inexcusably long absence from his hos- 

 pital post and failure to send the needed medicines 

 so aroused General Gates that he wrote the President 

 of the Congress on August 31 as follows: *' 



The Director of the General Hospital in this department. 

 Doctor Stringer, was sent to New-York three and thirty 

 days ago, with positive orders to return the instant he had 

 provided the drugs and medicines so much wanted. Since 

 then, repeated letters have been wrote to New- York and 



"' Potts Papers, vol. 1, folio 77; Morgan to Potts, July 28, 

 1776. 



''^ Ibid., folio 89: Stringer to Potts, August !7, 1776. See 

 also Gibson, op. cit. (footnote 2), pp. 108-109. Washington 

 mentions Stringer's visit with Morgan in a letter to Gates 

 dated August 14 (Washington, ofi. cit. footnote 48, vol. 5, 

 pp. 433-435). 



^ Ibid.; McHenry to Potts, .\ugust 3, 1776. [Stringer 

 arrived in Philadelphia on the evening of .August 2.] 



*i Ibid.; Stringer to Potts, .August 17, 1776. 



82 Ibid.; McHenry to Potts, August 21, 1776. 



«3 American Archives, ser. 5, vol. 1, p. 1271. For a similarly 

 worded letter to Egbert Benson dated .August 22, see Gibson, 

 op. cit. (footnote 2), p. 112. 



Philadelphia, setting forth in the strongest terms the pressing 

 necessity of an immediate supply of these articles. 



Finally, almost a month after his arrival in Phila- 

 delphia, Stringer set out for .\lbany with a small stock 

 of drugs. On September 7 he wrote Potts from 

 Albany that he hoped the small supply that he 

 obtained and the chest of medicines that Morgan had 

 just sent would hold out until he could obtain ad- 

 ditional supplies in New England, where he was then 

 headed "to ransack that Country of those articles we 

 want." *** 



Meanwhile, Potts at Fort George had started making 

 the desired inventory of medicines. It came as no 

 surprise to anyone that the situation was deplorable — 

 indeed, it was worse than that. On August 31 a 

 committee of surgeons at Ticonderoga prepared at 

 General Gates' order ".\ Catalogue of Medicines 

 Most Necessary for the Army." This list, un- 

 doubtedly representing the minimum requirements 

 of each battalion, called for 20 pounds of bark, 4 

 pounds of gum camphor, 2 pounds of gum opium, 

 3 pounds of powdered ipecac, 4 pounds of powdered 

 jalap, 2 pounds of powdered rhubarb, 15 pounds of 

 Epsom salts, and 3 pounds of tartar emetic among 

 two dozen different medicines.'^ Instead of these 

 minimum requirements, regimental surgeons at 

 Ticonderoga, Crown Point, Mount Independence, 

 and Fort George presented inventories (mostly dated 

 September 8j that clearly emphasized their destitute 

 condition. 



The first New Jersey battalion at Ticonderoga 

 reported "No Jallap, Rhubarb, Salts, or Ipecac"; 

 while Colonel Whilocks' regiment at Ticonderoga 

 reported "No medicines exclusive of private property." 

 The five companies of artillery at Fort George 

 reported "Medicines — None," as did the 24th Regi- 

 ment at Mount Independence. Others reported small 

 or "tollerable" assortments of medicine. .-X close 

 examination of the inventory of the Pettnsylvania 6th 

 Battalion at Crown Point shows it to have been 



8< Potts Papers, vol. I, folio 98; Stringer to Potts, September 

 7, 1776. Stringer arrived in Albany on September 5 (Potts 

 Papers, vol. 1, folio 97). 



^^ American .Archives, ser. 5, vol.1, p. 1266. Other items in- 

 cluded "Acet. Com. six barrels; Alo. Hepta. 3 lb.; Calomel 2 

 lb.; Emp. Diachyl 10 lb.; Cantharid. 2 lb.; Gm. Guiac 1 lb.; 

 Myrrh 1 lb.; Hord. Com. 100 lb.: Jerc. Prccip. Rub. ',. lb.; 

 Merc. Cor. Sublim. 1 lb.; Rad. Serpent. Virg. 3 lb.; Sal. 

 Nit. 5 lb.; Spirit Sal. .Ammo. 4 lb.; Ung. Diath. 3 lb.; Elix. 

 Asthmat. 5 lb.; and Elix. N'itriol. 10 lb." Also included 

 were si.x gross of vials and corks and three reams of wrapping 

 paper. 



PAPER 16: DRUG SUPPLIES IN THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION 



119 



